How Pilates Will Make You Feel

If you don’t do Pilates regularly, you may wonder how you’ll feel with consistent practice. Over the past fifteen years of teaching Pilates, I’ve learned that it’s usually when someone stops doing Pilates that they notice how much it has been helping them. That’s probably because Pilates helps your body move better and with more ease, and as humans, we tend to focus on what’s wrong, rather than what’s right in our bodies. 

How Pilates Helps Me 

Once upon a time, I taught a variety of aerobics, body sculpting, and spin classes. Needless to say, I moved my body a lot. On top of that, I was running, and lifting weights, and I’d go to Pilates classes a couple times a week. Now when I’m teaching classes, I’m mostly coaching rather than leading by example at the front of the room (like in an aerobics class). My job also involves a lot more desk time than it used to. 

Like most people, I need to plan my workouts so they fit around my work schedule and daily life. Pilates helps relieve the back pain I get from sitting too long. While I still love to run, I’ve had typical runner’s injuries like plantar fasciitis, and Pilates helps keep me running safely and pain-free. I didn’t use to notice how good Pilates made me feel, but I can certainly tell now when I’m not consistent with it. 

When I Know I Need To Do More

A few months ago around the holidays, I was busy setting up the new studio. There was planning, paperwork, renovations, and setting up the studio. I was spending a lot more time at my desk, and my usual routine was off-track. Slowly but surely, my lower back got tighter and sorer. I was still fitting in Pilates, but not regularly, and my body was telling me to get back at it! 

After a few visits to the chiropractor and daily Pilates, I’m feeling much better. I’ve been making sure to do Pilates every day when I can, even if it’s just ten minutes. When I can do a full session, it’s usually about forty minutes, and wow, does it work! A few days ago I felt the pain and tightness returning, so I hopped onto my new reformer and did a workout two days in a row. I feel amazing and pain-free again. 

What Others Have To Say About Pilates

Of course, a Pilates instructor is going to tell you how transformative it can be, but don’t just take my word for it! Here are some things I’ve heard clients say recently about how Pilates makes them feel. 

• She Feels Less Back Pain.  I have a newer client whose job involves a lot of walking and is physically demanding. She just returned after taking a two-week holiday and told me how she notices her back hurting again after missing just two weeks. 
• She Wants To Do More. Many of my clients are long-term, with this particular one coming regularly two to three times a week for years. During the pandemic and other busy times in her life, she’s had to miss classes or even a week at a time. She told me that she really notices when she misses class and is looking into buying her own reformer to supplement her studio classes. She knows that being able to practice at home will make her feel that much better. 
• Others Notice His Improvements. I’ve got another client who cycles as a hobby and also travels for work weeks at a time. He describes his tight legs as “rock hard” (though not in a good way), and it amazes me that he doesn’t have extreme pain from his lack of flexibility and mobility. Well, over the past few months, I’ve seen significant improvements in those areas, and others are noticing, too! He just returned from a work trip, where others commented on his improved posture. 
• They Keep Coming Back. I often see new clients who have done Pilates off and on for up to twenty years. The common reason for coming back to a studio is because they remember how great they felt when they did Pilates regularly. 

Yes, Pilates is physical movement and a form of exercise. It is more than that, though. It’s therapeutic, too, and is the perfect compliment to life. It makes everything you do, from cleaning the house to indulging in hobbies to participating in sports, that much easier. So keep doing all the things you love to do, thanks to your Pilates practice.